Read Online In the Spotlight by Liz Botts, Elaina Lee - Free Book Online Page B

had never invited me to come to a party before, so naturally I had to be a little suspicious.
    Harlow giggled. “I haven’t seen you in such a long time. Is it a crime that I want to spend time with my baby sister?”
    I rolled my eyes. “First of all, you saw me on Sunday when you came home for dinner to beg Mom and Dad for more money.
    And second of all, you never want to spend time with me.”
    “Well, I do tonight,” Harlow insisted. “Please. Please. Please say you’ll come with me. We’ll have so much fun.”
    “I guess so,” I agreed hesitantly. Spending time with Harlow was always risky business. “Where exactly are we going?”
    “Oh, you know,” Harlow said dismissively. “This guy I know, knows a girl whose boyfriend is having a party at his best friend’s house.”
    “Huh?” I don’t think Harlow could have even followed herself through that maze of linguistic dancing.

    “I’ll pick you up in an hour,” Harlow said. “Wear something cute.”
    Something cute turned out to be jeans and a sweater. I wasn’t going to be stupid. It was the beginning of February, for goodness sake. Harlow’s hour was also more like two and a half hours. During that time, I got all of my weekend homework done, and convince my parents that it was actually a really good idea for me to spend some quality time with my big sister. Luckily, my parents trusted me completely, even where they didn’t trust Harlow.
    “You look old.” Harlow greeted me with a frowning perusal of my outfit.
    “Old?” I asked. “What does that mean exactly?”
    Harlow groaned. “That sweater looks like something Grandma would wear to play bingo.”
    “Aw, thanks, sis, you look great too.” I laughed. “This is what I’m wearing. Get over it. And since when does our grandma play bingo?”
    “Fine,” Harlow grumbled. “But don’t blame me if you don’t get any action.”
    “I’m not interested in action,” I told her. This was met with eye rolling. After she had promised Mom several dozen times that she would take good care of me, we headed over to the Apartment City part of town.
    Apartment City was thus named because it was where most of the college students lived, just row after row of apartment buildings. We pulled up to a building that was clearly party central for the night. Every light was on, and drunk college students were milling around the entry way even though the temperature had to be around ten degrees.
    The apartment of Harlow’s friend’s boyfriend’s aunt’s grandma or whoever it was made Harlow’s dorm room look like a palace. It was a cramped studio with far too many people crammed inside. The music was blaring. The air was rank with beer and sweat. I found a place on the couch where I could watch the idiotic action of Harlow and her friends.
    Harlow began the evening by doing two shots in a row off some girl’s belly button. This assured her the attention of every male in the room. Then she danced on the coffee table, shedding extraneous pieces of clothing as she made strippers look modest.
    Just as I was starting to feel really embarrassed, she leapt off the coffee table into the arms of the first available male. That was the last I saw of her for the evening.
    “Hey,” a smarmy guy said sidling up next to me. “Beer?”
    “No thanks,” I said curtly, hoping to deter his advances.
    Instead, he took it as an invitation to sit down next to me. I didn’t have the patience to deal with him, so I got up and pushed my way outside. Tugging my coat closer around me, I peered around the dark street. Where had Harlow parked the car? A sharp wind whipped down the street, and I pulled my coat tighter, shivering.
    “Hannah!”
    I turned at the sound of my name. There was Josh with a few other basketball players getting ready to go in to the party. He said something to the other guys and ambled over to me while the others went inside.
    “What are you doing here?” We asked at the same time, and then we